Chanting participants in the march, which started at 12.15pm on the University Union lawn, called on vice-chancellor Prof Harlene Hayne to scrap plans to cut 182 full-time equivalent general staff jobs.
One of a series of speakers outside the university registry, TEU national industrial and professional vice-president Phil Edwards, emphasised the high human costs of the proposed cuts.
Tertiary Education Union organiser Shaun Scott was ''really pleased with the turnout'' from academic staff and students, as well as from general staff.
If the cuts went ahead, there was a risk there would simply not be enough staff to properly support research and teaching activities.
A huge number of staff had made submissions against the cuts and the union hoped the university would be receptive, Mr Scott said.
''We are hoping that the feedback will be listened to.''
University human resources director Kevin Seales said this might be ''a difficult time for some'' but the university needed to make ''difficult decisions to ensure that Otago remained a world-class institution''.
University management had ''consulted widely'' with the university community and had ''done our utmost to approach the inevitable need for change, given our budgetary constraints, in a way which will impact staff the least, and enhance our teaching and research activities the most''.
